Santa Clara City Code ch. 18.26, Downtown Form-Based Code ch. 5 — Building Placement | Santa Clara City Code (Title 18, Zoning, July 2025 edition; partial) — Santa Clara

Santa Clara City Code ch. 18.26, Downtown Form-Based Code § 5.1 Intent

The standards and guidelines of this section seek to ensure that, to the extent practical, new buildings are sited and oriented to appropriately define and engage new and existing streets, public spaces, courts, and paseos (See Section 14 for a Glossary of all words in italic blue font).

Santa Clara City Code ch. 18.26, Downtown Form-Based Code § 5.2 Applicability

The standards and guidelines of this section apply to all projects which include the construction of new primary buildings. BUILDING PLACEMENT—This Axonometric view of the Building Placement diagram (Figure 5-1) illustrates how buildings are to be set close to the front property line (per Table 5-2) to define and engage streets and open spaces. FIGURE 5-1 | BUILDING PLACEMENT | B Alley | | |---|---| Building Footprint Property Line

Santa Clara City Code ch. 18.26, Downtown Form-Based Code § 5.3 Standards

A. Frontage Buildout. The primary facades of new primary buildings shall be set within the build-to ranges in compliance with Tables 5-1 and 5-2 and the text of this section. The following elements may recess from or break the ground floor facade and constitute allowed exceptions to the frontage buildout requirement: 1. Forecourts, subject to Standard 9.3.B, can span up to 35% of a lot's frontage buildout requirement. However, forecourts are not Permitted on Franklin St or the Central Green. 2. Entrances—no wider than 12'—to paseos or passages, or side yards (See Section 9.5). 3. Exterior staircases and associated landing areas. 4. Chamfered corners, provided they include an entrance or stairway. 5. Recessed Shopfronts: Ground floor shopfront facades may be recessed up to 8' behind the Build-To Range to create a "Recessed Shopfront," provided the facade above the recessed shopfront is located within the Build-To Range. If the ground floor is recessed for multiple adjacent bays (see Chapter 8 for more on Bays), there shall be a wall or column between each bay, supporting the upper floor facades. B. Building Orientation. Buildings, in order to properly orient toward and engage the public realm, shall take access from and front the public realm per Chapter 9. 1. Front Setback and Encroachments. The design of the front setback area—the space between the ground floor building facade and public right-of-way—is regulated by Chapter 9. Allowed Architectural Projections into the front, side, and rear setback areas are regulated in Chapter 10. TABLE 5-1 | FACADE BUILDOUT BY CHARACTER OVERLAY

	Shopfront	Retail-Ready	General
Facade Buildout in Front Street Build-To Range A (as percentage of total buildable length along the street or open space)	100% 1	100% 1	70-100% 1

TABLE 5-2 | BUILDING SETBACKS BY STREET (DIAGRAMMED BELOW) | | Franklin St | Main St South | Lafayette St | All Other North- South Streets | Central Green | Benton St & Homestead Rd | |---|---|---|---|---|---|---| Build-To Range

Front Street Build-To B Range 2	12' – 15' 3	0’ – 5’ 3
Side and Rear Setbacks
Side yard adjacent to C another lot (min.)	0’	10% of lot width or 5’, whichever is less
D Rear with alley (min.)	15’ from the centerline of the alley
Rear without alley (min.)	20’
E Separation between mult. buildings on a lot (min.)	0’	10’

FIGURE 5-2 | BUILDING SETBACKS KEY * * Arts Commons Notes 1 See allowable exceptions in §5.3.A. 2 Measured from the property line(s) adjacent to the street or open space. 3 The Franklin St, Main St South, and Lafayette St front setback area shall be designed as an extension of the sidewalk per Section 9.3.C. 4 Along Lafayette St, the face of any Arcade shall be set 6 feet from the property line (see §10.4.H). 5 Continuous arcade(s) shall project over this setback, lining Central Green (see §10.4.H). 6 Buildings lining Arts Commons and a potentially-relocated Franklin Square shall be set at the edge of those spaces, with 100% buildout, as they are dimensioned in Precise Plan Fig. 3-2. See also Code Fig. 4-2. 7 See Standard 5.3.E. C. Parking and Vehicular Access 1. Per Section 12.1, Surface parking lots are not permitted (exception: parking spaces along an alley, with no additional aisles for the purposes of accessing parking, are permitted). 2. Structured ground floor parking shall be set behind at least 30 feet of occupiable ground floor liner space. See Section 12.5.A.2 for parking structure design standards. 3. Vehicular access (see precedent at lower left) into the ground floor of a building, where allowed, comprises part of a building's frontage buildout. See Section 9.4.F for Vehicular Access frontage type design standards. 4. Vehicular drives into a lot, or "driveways" (see precedent lower right), do not comprise part of the frontage buildout, and they are not exceptions to the buildout percentage. They are not allowed in the Shopfront Overlay, Retail-Ready Overlay, or anywhere an alley is present. See Section 12.5.A.1 for driveway design standards. VEHICULAR ACCESS INTO THE GROUND FLOOR is a frontage type and is regulated by §9.4.F. VEHICULAR DRIVES INTO A LOT are to be located and designed to preserve the beauty and function of the Downtown environment. D. Public Realm Extensions. While most buildings and ground-floor units will front onto and take their primary access from the adjacent Public Realm right-of-way, some buildings and ground-floor units may take this primary access from shared private spaces and connections that function as extensions of the public realm into a site. Such spaces comprise a "Semi-Public Realm” and serve as transitions between fully-public and fully-private spaces. Public Realm Extensions are subject to the following standards: 1. Continuous Access Route. A Public Realm Extension may comprise a single space or connection type, or it may be a sequence of spaces and connections. In either case, Public Realm Extensions shall connect directly to the public realm. a. For public realm connections which extend through the block from one street to another (such as a paseo), the maximum distance to any primary access shall be 150 feet. b. For public realm connections which do not extend through the block (such as a forecourt), the maximum distance to any primary access shall be 100 feet. c. A space which is ‘floating’ within a block—such as an internal court which is not linked via other shared spaces or connections to the public realm—shall not provide the sole frontage to a primary building. 2. Frontage. The standards and guidelines in Sections 8 and 9, the Facade Design and Private Frontages sections, shall be applied to the facades which define and front these spaces, including frequent points of building access and clear, ample fenestration. 3. Activation. Semi-public spaces may allow public access or they may limit access to residents to create a more private space. However, these spaces are not intended to be fully private, which means that they shall remain visible from the public realm, and activate the public realm via the regular coming and going of residents and visitors. 4. Connectivity. Public realm extensions also provide connections through blocks. This is accomplished with a paseo or through a sequence of courts and paseos linking together through the block. Where non-vehicular paths are used, full and unrestricted public access shall be provided throughout the route. 5. Amenities. Public realm extensions also double as amenity space, and they should be designed and furnished as such. They can serve as spaces for gathering, play, and can include fountains and other amenities. 6. Design. The size, configuration, and character of these spaces shall prioritize pedestrian comfort. The spaces and connections which comprise a Public Realm Extension are subject to Section 9.3.B and the following: a. Public Realm Extensions shall connect directly to the public sidewalk. Any necessary steps, ramps, and/or elevators to connect them shall be easy to locate and comfortable to use. Apart from steps and ramps, surfaces used by pedestrians shall be flat. b. Decorative and/or permeable pavement is encouraged. c. Landscaping, pedestrian-scale lighting, and seating areas are encouraged. d. Public Realm Extensions may be enclosed from the public realm with landscaping, low walls, and/or fences, provided that entrances are provided. No wall or fence enclosing a public realm extension may exceed 3 feet in height. e. On-site driving and parking areas shall either be designed as shared, multi-use spaces or be kept separate with strategic siting of buildings and/or landscaping. FIGURE 5-3 | PUBLIC REALM EXTENSIONS: SEMI-PUBLIC SPACES AND CONNECTIONS from the public right-of-way via a shared private connection such as a Passage. Forecourts abut and receive direct access from the public right of way. E. Placement of the Market/Food Hall on Arts Commons. The Market/Food Hall structure on Arts Commons, along Lafayette St, shall fit within the 45' by 75' area identified in Precise Plan Figure 3-2. It may be freestanding or connect to the adjacent building in Block A. In either case, a clear outdoor or indoor/outdoor public pedestrian way must pass between it and the rest of Block A, connecting Lafayette Street to Arts Commons. Paseos, passages, and side yards abut and receive direct access from the public right of way. Paseos connect through blocks, creating a non-vehicular link between public rights of way.